Halo: Time Warp
by Super Soldier 117
Summary: The Master Chief and Cortana are teleported to an alternate reality where they discover an alien race capable of defeating the Covenant.
1. Intro

Halo: Time Warp  
  
Chapter 1: Intro  
  
Date: September 12, 2552 / 1307 Hours Location: Halo Debris Field  
  
The Master Chief sat in the flight seat of his pelican that he had used to escape the ring world known as Halo. His thoughts were that of the past, what he had endured, and where he was to go from here. He had survived the Covenant onslaught against him. He had destroyed The Flood, a viral disease that spread to another by the slightest physical contact and turned all the infected into hideous incarnations of green blood, skin, and muscle. "Kind of lacking in the brains, though." though Master Chief, still reflecting on his adventure into hell. He had also shown his superior intellect as he had outwitted an ancient alien artificial intelligence construct attempting to destroy all life in the universe. He had done it all with the help of Cortana.  
  
Cortana was the UNSC's most advanced AI, specializing in software intrusion and decryption. She was known as a "Smart AI" among civilians because she was able to carry on an advanced conversation with emotion as a human would. If it weren't for Cortana, the Master Chief would never have survived. How had he survived? Was it the element of surprise, the genetic mutations that ran through his veins and bones, or just plain dumb luck, which the Master Chief seemed to have an unlimited supply of? Was it his MJOLNIR armor, which consisted and improved upon the shields the Jackels of the Covenant used for protection? The armor also accelerated things such as speed and reaction times, enhanced the vision and provided him with a HUD showing shield strength, NAV points, and bio-monitors for allies, decreased the production of glucose from muscles allowing him to be more active for a much longer time, and permitted him to breathe outside a pressurized environment provided he required to. He contemplated these thoughts as Cortana swept through the debris of Halo again and again.  
  
An eerie silence followed, broken by Cortana. "Scan of the debris field for human survivors still negative, Chief. Would you like me to." "Scan it again." Master Chief growled instinctively. He had had time to rest from his ordeals. Time to think, time to heal. Three days wasted to him. He felt so useless just sitting around unable to complete his mission: to save earth. He had started searching the moment the Covenant had made their slipstream jumps out of the system, but that was still a day and a half. The fact that nothing remained of anything or anyone he had started out with was just unacceptable. He would not fail again. "Chief, I think I found something." "What is it Cortana?" the Master Chief asked. "Undetermined, however I am picking electric carrier waves similar to that of a Covenant Banshee. Would you like me to investigate?" she finished. "How soon till we arrive?" "ETA approximately three minutes." The time elapsed as slow as an early model space shuttle.  
  
"We have arrived. Analyzing. Curious. Very Curious." Cortana stated. The Master Chief glanced out of the front view screen. A brilliant bright light no larger than that of a grenade glowed white among the debris. "What the hell is that?" "It appears to be an energy source similar to that of a Covenant plasma weapon. Unable to determine origin." The pelican eased forward toward the light. Suddenly the ship seemed to be attracted toward the light. "Cortana, you shouldn't get too close to that thing." "I'm not doing it. I have lost control of the ship's navigational systems. There is nothing I can do to stop it." She said, a quiver of fear in her voice. "Estimated contact in 5 seconds" she said. Master Chief grabbed the support rail alongside the edge of the pilots chamber bracing and readying himself for the worst. "Three seconds." She said. Sparks started coming from all of the monitors. The screen showing the bright light, went black. "One second." The Master Chief saw a figure similar to an angel appear before him briefly, as his vision blurred, and went black. 


	2. They're Coming

Chapter 2: They're Coming  
  
Date: April 04, 2554 / 0659 Hours Location: UNSC HQ14-C / Earth  
  
Admiral Blake Stanforth sat in a chair shaking just outside the President of Earth's office, running over and over what he was about to disclose to the President. His mind was in another place; he wished his body were also. Reach - the strongest military outpost just outside the inner colonies, had fallen a year and a half ago. The Covenant was marching again after they tore through the planet. They hadn't glassed it like they usually would have and he didn't know why. That is why he had sent a probe to the system.  
  
"The President will see you now, Admiral." The secretary announced. The Admiral stood, shook himself off like a wet dog, and made his way into the marble office of the president.  
  
"Sit down, Admiral." The president said. The Admiral didn't need to be told twice. "So, what is this information that could be so important that it required a direct violation of the Cole Protocol?" He had violated the Protocol by sending the probe to Reach.  
  
"Sir, I had received intel that the Covenant ships had left the area." He knew his excuse was weak and unacceptable.  
  
"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING SOLDIER? MY GOD, DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT YOU HAVE DONE? I Have just received word that there are over 700 Covenant warships inbound, 5 of them flagships. You have lead them straight to Earth." The President shouted as if there was no tomorrow. And from the looks of things, there wasn't going to be.  
  
"Sir, how could I be responsible for this atrocity? My probe indicated that the Covenant had left the system." Said the Admiral.  
  
The president, not thinking of this, found himself back in his chair. He had stood up while shouting. "You bring a valid point to my blind eyes, Admiral. However, this still does not excuse your breach of the Cole Protocol. You have been stripped of your admiral status, Private." He said, sentencing the man.  
  
This came as no shock to Stanforth. In fact, it was more of a surprise. He had been expecting a court marshal.  
  
"Thank you, sir." Stanforth managed to babble out of his mouth. He had to know why he was so severely under sentenced. "May. may I ask you why I wasn't executed?" He asked fearfully, yet curious. He deserved to die.  
  
The president stood, about faced, and walked to the window on the outskirts of his office, and stared at the lush lawn that maintained the peaceful atmosphere on the planet. One of few planets left. "I have had ample time to think about how to sentence you. You have been "selected" because of your previous record to be a participant in the training of the next group of SPARTANS. With the loss of the Master Chief, we have been loosing the war with those Covenant bastards twice as fast. He was our best man in any division. He disappeared in the destruction of Reach when the ship he was aboard, The Pillar of Autumn, and entered slipstream to escape the Covenant. No word has been received from any of the personal of that ship. That includes the Master Chief." The President finished.  
  
Private Stanforth stood in shock from this information. "Sir, how am I suppose to participate in this training operation if the Covenant are just hours away from Earth?"  
  
"We have prepared a facility for you and the young Spartans along with underground facilities for a handful of civilians. No matter what the cost, the human race must survive. Do you understand?" he asked.  
  
"I understand my mission, sir. How long do we have until the Covenant invade earth?" the private asked.  
  
"Our intelligence indicates that they arrive in system at approx. 1300 hours. We have sent out a distress call to all the warships able to make the fight to get here ASAP. The rest have been ordered to make their way to the hidden colonies to protect them. One of these ships will arrive at earth in 2 hours. You are ordered to be on that ship before it takes off. Understood?" He asked with a renewed luster.  
  
"Absolutely, sir." He said.  
  
"Very well, you are dismissed, General".  
  
"Sir, I thought you said." The President cut him off.  
  
"We need every good man we can get, and your infraction of the Cole Protocol won't be of importance once the Covenant get in-system. You're battle record against the Covenant is outstanding even among Admirals of your former rank. Now, get the hell outta here and get your stuff together. Good luck." The President conversed the vast room and shook the Generals hand.  
  
"Thank you, Sir." Stanforth said as he shook his hand. He released the hand of the President and left the room in one piece, more than he had expected to do.  
  
He hadn't managed to disclose the information he had prepared. The President wasn't ready for it. "It would have to wait." Stanforth thought, and he walked down the long hall massed with security checkpoints. "He couldn't tell him that his daughter had disappeared and that they had no idea where she had gone. Was she kidnapped, or murdered perhaps? He had made up his mind not to leave without her.  
  
General Blake Stanforth had his work cut out for him, as did the earth's defenses, which were feeble compared to the inbound Covenant battle group. This would be the largest battle in the history against the Covenant that would ever have happened. It would also be the last. They needed a miracle. . 


	3. The Eternals

Chapter 3: The Eternals  
  
Date: Unknown Location: Unknown  
  
"Chief? Chief! Are you alright" Cortana's harmonic voice resonated through the in-helmet speakers of the Master Chief's rebooting hardware. " I am so glad you're not dead, I have so much information to tell you about."  
  
The Master Chief, still a little dizzy, stood trying to shake the pain of like a bad case of fleas. As his vision returned, so did the memories of what had happened. Maybe Cortana had been able to find out what that light was. "What the hell happened?" Time seemed to glide by like a swarm of butterflies on a summer's breeze.  
  
"I don't know what happened to us other than we are alive. We were sucked into a vortex of energy that shut down my system. I am able to determine that we have traveled approx. 9 months into the future. I am not sure yet about how we did such an event, or how that is possible. I have determined that we are still within a slipstream's hour of the debris of Halo. I send a probe to the area and discovered a mass of unknown alien vessels in the area. They examined my probe and curiously sent a signal to us asking us who we are and offered assistance" she stated.  
  
"They, whoever they are, offered us assistance? Have you sent them a reply?" "That was my next question to you sir. Do you wish for me to send a distress signal?"  
  
Master Chief reviewed their current status. He had 3 hours of air remaining until he suffocated to death, his stomach was about to invert because he hadn't eaten in 4 days by his calendar, and the ship's engines were out for good. He wasn't a tech no matter what Cortana said. "Do it." He ordered.  
  
"Yes sir." Cortana said, sending the signal.  
  
Several moments passed without a hitch, without anything. "Send it again, Cortana."  
  
"Ok, sendin. wait, I'm receiving a reply. Processing. They said that they would be glad to assist and are enroute." She stated, a slight sense of relief in her voice.  
  
The Master Chief wasn't so sure. His options being depleted had made the choice for him. He did not know this species, nor did Cortana. He had no idea if they were allies, or if they would rip him apart to see what his innards were made of. He knew that if it came down to that, he'd take a few of the bastards down with him, or die trying.  
  
A few minutes later a huge bright purple light appeared in front of the ship as several small ships, no larger than his own pelican, appeared from the plasmatic Slipstream all to familiar to him.  
  
"Unknown alien vessel, we are dead in space and require your assistance. Non-hostile intentions. Lost. Please reply." The Master Chief stated with authority.  
  
A moment later Cortana spoke. "We're being hailed." "Put it on the front view screen." An image of a huge manlike figure appeared on the screen. It was around 15 feet tall and had 8 tentacles poking out of its head. It was the color of a Covenant warship, and from the look of the creature, the strength of one also.  
  
"Greetings. I am Spartan 117 of the UNSC's special unit division." he said, telling part of the truth so that if they ever found what he really was, they would still have a little trust.  
  
The figure spoke in a deep, yet crisp voice. "Hello, Master Chief, I am Higavod, Commander Of the Eternal's Slipstream Discovery and Recovery team. We are pleased to meet you Master Chief. Would you like to board our ship? We may discuss details here."  
  
Details? The Master Chief was curious by that statement. What details did Higavod speak of? After a careful moment of silence by both sides, a horrendous thought sparked inside his head. He was supposed to be 9 months into the future. Was there still an earth? Was he the last survivor? Dreadful waves of regret and anger filled him as he thought about the matter.  
  
"Chief? What's wrong? Is there something you don't like about them?" Cortana asked concernfully inside his helmet. He returned from his thought session and replied to both of them at the same time. "Prepare for my arrival." He said.  
  
* * *  
  
The boarding of the "Eternals" ship went as expected. Tension tight as a tripwire waiting for the foe to spring a free for all. He had made contact with the ship and had boarded it without a hitch. They had made a slipstream jump back to their main vessel, known as an Armoroid (the closest thing they could translate it to), where they would talk with their Leader, which was translated roughly into Domintix Profaticus (Dom for short).  
  
The Creatures were huge. Easily twice his size he felt a little out of place. The interior of the main vessel was black: Glistening gem-like objects serving as lighting made him feel like he was in a cave littered with diamonds. He had not seen any indications of hostility from them in their brief introduction on the Pelican and his boarding. However, with their sheer size and weight, a single bullet would just make these creatures itch and turn to scratch the Chief.  
  
"I sense your pulse has quickened. Are you afraid of these beings? All they have done is help up. Can't you just trust someone for once?" Cortana spoke while they were being escorted. "I am calm. Just trying not to let my guard down." The Master Chief replied. He lied. His serious and dirt brutal training hadn't covered this too well. He had never been good at negotiations. The only way he knew was to shoot first and ask questions later. But he knew that if that applied here, he'd probably be dead by now.  
  
They came to a room at the long end of a hall. As black as the hallway had seemed it had still gotten darker. Even his sensors inside his MJOLNIR armor were having trouble finding light to amplify. A crack appeared along the wall as one of them opened the massive door; each easily the size of a 21st century automobile, except on hinges.  
  
The room was the closest replication of hell that the MC had ever seen. He knew. He'd been there and back more times than he could remember. It even put blood to shame by making it look like a diluted pink. Placed inside the room was the largest table he had ever seen. And along with it, the Dom. He was dressed more formally than most of the Eternals the chief had seen since he arrived, but he could still make out the muscular outline of the strongest hunk of muscle he would ever see. The Dom turned to see him at the other end of the massive table, sat down in his "royal" chair, and with some flicks of his fingers, brought up the Ships AI.  
  
The Chief couldn't believe how alike the human technology was to theirs. That was a good question, but others had to come first. The Dom was the first to speak and with the translation of the AI, started. "Lets Talk."  
  
(EXPECT THE NEXT CHAPTER A WEEK INTO THE NEW YEAR!) 


	4. Death and Destruction

Halo: Time Warp  
  
Chapter 4: Death and Destruction  
  
Date: April 04, 2554 / 0741 Hours Location: UNSC Interstellar Ship Dock 182 Restroom / Earth  
  
Blake Stanforth bent over the toilet seat once again in a series of repetitions designed to make one throw up. He had a lot to be sick over: His previous actions, and his lack of being able to locate the President's daughter. Her name was Hallie Stargaze. He had been searching all the locations he could muster up. Schools, bathrooms, her home (which was deserted), even the entire facility of the dock. He still couldn't find her. But he hadn't given up yet. He still had several hours before he had to depart. Or at least he thought.  
  
He finished the exercise, left the restroom, and continued the search. He walked outside the main entrance of the Dock to look when he noticed how unprepared they really were. No one knew but him and the ones high in the Political System. Even the guards at the front door of the dock were just a casual as usual which he noticed as one of them greeted him.  
  
"Hello Sir." The guard muttered, checking his ID. "Everything is fine Sir, move right on." The guard stopped mid-statement and looked at the sky, startled. The General's grip tightened on a nearby handrail as his eyes drifted to the sky. Pinkish purple seemed to cover the blurry atmosphere, which was covered with clouds. "What in god's name is that don't ya wonder" the guard blurted out. "No. I don't have to wonder what that is because I know. It's the Covenant, and they're here to annihilate us all."  
  
* * *  
  
He headed as fast as he could to the nearest military station, which was defending one of the Orbital MAC Guns generators, Codenamed MAC-G17. Everyone was panicking; running for the nearest starship hoping to escape the Covenant's pending slaughter. The General was in a Warthog steering down a dirt road about 2 miles long at a blistering rate. He didn't know what he would be able to do, but he knew his previous mission, to travel to the off-world colonies and to protect them against any covenant threat was scrubbed. His vessel wasn't scheduled to arrive for a few hours still and with the Covenant battle group now in the system, they were sure to steer away to avoid utter destruction.  
  
He arrived at the security checkpoint at the edge of the generators perimeter. It was deserted. Stanforth revved his warthog's massive engine and plowed through the gate.  
  
He arrived at the defensive line about 100 yards outside the generator. It was an underground bunker about 6 meters thick and consisting of 3 meter layers of Concrete, and Titanium A. Built into a hill that overlooked a large area and allowing several overlapping lines of fire against incoming bogies, it gave the humans and advantage that would allow them to hold their own and keep the generator. At least for a while.  
  
On the top of the bunker, but still partially covered by the hill, were the anti-air (AA) turrets were providing anti-air enemies. 8 turrets on each side of the square generator made for 32 turrets in all.  
  
"Sir, We are in position for the incoming Covenant forces. There was a sighting by one of our scout teams of an invasion force inbound. We estimate 3 Covenant soldiers for every person on this planet." The soldier reported.  
  
21 Billion Covenant. How the hell were they going to stop this?  
  
"SIR, WERE UNDER ATTACK. MASSIVE COVENANT FORCES INBOU." the transmission went dead. The scout team was lost. And now all they could do was wait.  
  
It wasn't a long wait either before they began their first charge. The AA turrets were already busy with nearly a hundred banshees' that were flying over the swarm.  
  
All the humans could do was watch as the forces continued to come over the horizon. They were still out of range, but they could see then and they were way too close for comfort.  
  
Lines after line of Jackels were in the front. Their shields were linked together to form one gigantic shield covering the Covenant from any and all incoming fire. Behind them were the fuming Elites; each wearing their own colored armor, declaring their ranks among themselves. The gold elites followed by the red, blue, and silver ones followed them. Now coming over the edge of the far off sunset were the Hunters. Their huge armor- plated arms slinging at their side as if they were paper, they marched proud and tall toward their enemy. There were no grunts, however. They were not needed.  
  
"FIRE AT WILL!" the general ordered as every man inside the bunker, including him, opened fire. Sprays of purple blood rained down from the first waves of dropping Covenant as the next wave began to run faster, feeling the rage of their fallen warriors. They kept dying as fast as they were moving, as they were upon the bunker within minutes. The AA turrets were now opening fire on the massive group of enemy's incoming. The Hunters, seeing this, stopped in one line and warmed up their fuel rods. With this, the rest of the Covenant attack group began firing at the bunker.  
  
The Covenant were ruthless. The hunters were bombarding the soldiers in the bunker, and when they did pop up to shoot out of the bunker, the Covenant's plasma was right there to answer them. They were pinned down in their own stronghold. Now only a few of the AA turrets were online, either destroyed or dismanned by a well-placed shot by an elite or hunter.  
  
The General was a good aim. Most of his shots were dead on. Some of the other soldiers inside the bunker weren't so good at it. A bright flash zipped by the left side of the general. As his eyesight recovered from the brief brilliant flash of light, as he smelled the aroma of burning flesh. A super-charged plasma bolt had hit the soldier to his left directly in the face. Blood boiled out of his neck as he fell to the dirt ground. If something didn't happen soon, this bunker would be much more than just this person's grave.  
  
* * *  
  
Kyle Greenland was in a rush. He had been given the order from his father to pack everything that meant anything to him and be ready in 10 minutes. He wasn't sure what was going on other than his dad had been called into the base and that something big was going on. He hadn't yet set an eye to the purple colored sky. His dad was a Lieutenant in the Marines. He was on leave at the time to spend his son's birthday with him. The Covenant were going to give him an early present.  
  
"KYLE! WE HAVE TO GO NOW!" His father screamed at him with force. Kyle had just turned 16, and had received a new Virtual Reality System, the XJ47, Which was top of the line at the time. He didn't want to part with it to say the least, so he stuffed that in his bag. A few other things such as cookies, paper, homework, and a fresh set of clothes rounded out his collection. Suddenly the earth began to shake under his feet as violent as a hurricane. "What the hell is going on?!" he thought as he walked to the window to see if he could see what the cause was. He found the source, in the shape of a Covenant dropship.  
  
His dad burst into his locked room, grabbed him by the waist, bag and all, and carried him out the back of the house to a warthog that lay there in wait. Kyle looked up at the gloomy sky full of mist to the largest purple blur he had ever seen.  
  
They jumped into the warthog and gunned it all the way to the base. Kyle's father had shown him all the ropes: How to drive a warthog, pelican, or even a dropship. He had also taught him how to fire the LAAG guns that were mounted on a warthog through one of his VR games. They arrived at the base to find it like an anthill that had been disturbed. The Covenant had shot a large blast of plasma on the concrete roof of the complex, destroying the roof and several floors. The main base was a little farther underground than they had shot, so most of the men were still alive and ready to fight.  
  
The lieutenant told his son to wait in the warthog while he receives his orders from HQ, and then strode off into the base. Kyle wasn't in the least scared. He knew his father would win. He always had. He always came home alive in one piece. He watched all the commotion around the base as he waited. Most soldiers were boarding aircraft of some sort to fend off the invaders. MA5B Assault rifles and the standard Pistol were accompanying most of then, while several chose more devastating weapons such as the Sniper Rifles, or the Rocket Launchers.  
  
His father returned from the briefing and said to Kyle, "We're being sent in to assist the soldiers defending one of the MAC generators. I want you to pilot us there." He finished. Kyle looked at his father's hazel eyes searching for an emotion. "What do you mean, me? Surely you can pilot it better than I can. You taught me for crying out loud!" Kyle pleaded. "I know. But I need to be assisting my soldiers while we're enroute. And I've seen you in your VR simulations. You're a far better pilot than I am." He said.  
  
Such words coming from his father meant more than anything. "Fine. I'll do it." Kyle replied. "Oh, and one more thing," his dad said, "I want you to have this." He handed Kyle a pistol. "This thing has saved my live more times than I can remember. I want it to bring you the same amount of good fortune. It's fully loaded, so be careful." Kyle didn't really think he needed a pistol, but he accepted the gift anyway. "Alright son, lets see what you can do."  
  
The reality of what was going on didn't sink in fully until he sat in the pilot's seat of his very own pelican. He was transporting his own father, along with 9 other soldiers, to the 17th MAC gun Generator. As he started the engine of the aircraft, he felt it shudder. His VR hadn't covered this part of a flight. However, he was confident that he would make the flight without a hitch. He took off from the base towards the generator and would arrive there in 5 minutes. On the way, the soldiers onboard were firing at enemy resistance along the way. Seas of soldiers fought inside forests, along riverbanks, inside cities, and on military ground. They were everywhere, and they didn't stop coming. 


	5. Together In This

Chapter 5: Together In This  
  
Date: May 23, 2553 / 1431 Hours Location: Aboard Armoroid-Class A Vessel / Unknown region of space  
  
The Master Chief sat in the oversized chair without ease. He was aboard an unknown alien flagship, they had taken his weapons for inspection and personal security, and he was alone. Well, he wished he could say he was alone, because Cortana wouldn't shut up with fascinations about the Eternals, and their ship. They had been nice enough so far, but the Master Chief's training had always told him to keep his guard up, and that's just what he was doing.  
  
"Ok," said the Dom, "Let me begin by saying I am pleased to meet you and host you aboard our ship. We have longed for a long time to actually meet a Spartan such as yourself." Hearing this, the Chief spoke up. "What did you say? How did you know what I was?" He asked. "We have been studying the human race for over 200 years in secret. When the Covenant started their invasion, we began to see traces of heroic bravery and skill in some of the military's operations. We decided to investigate and found you. Master Chief, Spartan 117, etc. We know everything about you, except what happened when you left the battle for Reach." The Dom said.  
  
The Master Chief sighed and began to tell his tale about halo, the flood, and his narrow escape. "I'm impressed." The Dom said, after he had finished. "Yeah, whatever." The Master Chief said, his lack of enthusiasm showing. The Master Chief was furious inside. They had read one of the UNSC's top-secret projects as easily as an open book. All that they had struggled to protect was in vein. And he had to tell his damn story into the hell known as halo again. But the chief's thoughts halted on a single fact. They knew were Earth was, but they hadn't attacked.  
  
The Dom continued his conversation. "Anyway, now for the bad news." He sat up straighter in his chair, and the Chief inhaled a sharp, cold breath. "We, in the past, were partners with the Covenant. We were one of their strongest allies. However, when they began to enslave other races into their own and using them for their military and religious purposes, we decided that they were not what we needed to be affiliated with. So we disbanded from them and have been neutral ever since. We never fully trusted them from the start, so we slowly worked our spies into their main networks. They have been keeping tabs on them for us for quite a while and now have discovered something horrific. The Covenant have plans to attack earth as close as a year from now and will enter the system with their largest scripted battle group. We have deemed this unacceptable and are willing to assist you in defending your homeworld." The Dom spoke with pride in his offer.  
  
"Wow," said Cortana, "I can't believe this. What do you think, Chief?" She asked. The Master Chief was equally stunned. He couldn't understand still, even though the Dom had told him, why they would want to help him. But dazzled as he was, he wasn't about to pass up such an offer. "What's in it for you?" the Chief asked.  
  
The Dom replied as if he was expecting this response "Revenge. We do not believe in their torture of other races. And we feel that you can be trusted. We can offer you more than enough military to defend your homeworld, as well as something more. But we'll get to that later. Can we be partners?"  
  
The Master Chief sat on the thought no longer than a heartbeat. He had found his miracle. "Yes. We'll be together in this mess. Now, how soon until we arrive at Earth?" he asked.  
  
"There are several ways in which we can enter your system. We can enter your system by a standard slipstream jump, and risk harm to our ships until you can form our alliance with the rest of your kind, or we can use our own special technology, which takes the light bending ways of slipstream, and inverts them, making us undetectable by any means of detection. The only problem with our technology is that our speed is quite slow. It would take us around 11 months to arrive at your planet. Seeing as that our spies say that the Earth invasion isn't for at least a year, that should still give us ample time to arrive, do our business, and prepare to ward off the Covenant." The Dom said, giving the choice to the Master Chief.  
  
"I think I would prefer to take the stealth route. But answer this first. If we receive word that the Covenant attack ahead of schedule, could we escape this inverted slipstream and make a normal one there?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, yes of course, and our slipstream systems are even more advanced than the Covenant's. We concluded that It took you 3 hours to arrive from Reach to Halo. It would have taken us less than 20 minutes." He said proudly. "And, we have already prepared a cryo-tube for you to sleep most of the journey away in. Just give me the order, and I'll start our trek.  
  
"Go. Go now." The Master Chief said.  
  
"Very well then." The Dom turned his head and barked something in his native tongue to one of the officers sitting behind a table, and the officer began the slipstream jump, as did the rest of the massive fleet. The Master Chief had forgotten that he was even talking to the ship's AI the whole time and at the same time, stared out of the front view screen. Thousands of tears in space appeared as each one drifted into their own contorted and inverted vortex. This Slipstream, unlike the Covenant's and the UNSC's, was black, with a tint of red color around the exterior of the tear. The ship drifted closer and closer until he suddenly felt his bones being ripped apart, and his shields drained completely. But after they had drifted into the slipstream, he felt normal again. The Dom spoke up, and the AI began its flawless translation again.  
  
"Agh. I hate that part. First time is the worst." He chuckled slightly and continued. "My officers and personel will escort you to your cryo-tube and quarters. This cryo-tube, just like most of our things, is different too. Inside this chamber, not only will you be automatically ejected just before we arrive, but you will also have the ability to leave through the AI you carry in your head. She will be able to sense when you are ready to awaken and will start and monitor the procedure. Any questions?" he concluded.  
  
"I will?" said Cortana, a little dazzed by what she had heard and was wondering how this would happen.  
  
"Well, since you already know about her, no sense in trying to hide her. She has a question. How will she be able to tell?" the Master Chief asked.  
  
"I don't fully understand the process, but I've done it several times myself, and it works." The Dom replied.  
  
"Fine. Wake me up when I'm there." The Master Chief said as he got up from his seat, and left the room. 


	6. Overdrive Reverse

Sry about the long update time, I've been really busy with school, band, and other things. This is my longest chapter thus far, and I hope it makes up for lost time. Thanks for all the great reviews! Keep it up, and I will too!. E-mail me with other comments or questions. Till next time, L8erz.  
  
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Chapter 6: Overdrive Reverse  
  
Date: April 04, 2554 / 0903 Hours Location: Inside Outer Perimeter Bunker of MAC Gun Generator 17 / Earth  
  
"Sir! We're getting butchered. Our lines are faltering. We need Reinforcements, on both the land and in the air. If something doesn't happen soon, we're going to lose the generator." The soldier reported.  
  
"Tell me something I don't know or get back to fighting, NOW!" the general yelled back at him. The soldier jumped back slightly, and returned fire again at the enemy. The general had called in backup almost 20 minutes ago. He knew that they were being invaded by an estimated 21 billion Covenant ground troops, but there should have been backup in less than 10 minutes. This was one of their MAC gun generators, and they wouldn't give that up without a serious bloodshed happening first. There were now 6 men inside his side of the bunker, and 1 AA turret still in operation. A fuel rod gun either obliterated the others, or the gunner was boiled alive by plasma.  
  
"Sir, pelican dropship inbound, they just radioed in saying that they are going to land behind the bunker and provide more men to fend of as many as possible before a warship can assist." His radio inside his helmet said, giving him his new orders.  
  
"That's affirmative, HQ." He sent back as a reply.  
  
About 2 more minutes of fighting and another 10 meters ground advancement had taken place before even the slightest sign of a human aircraft was seen. The ship seemed to come out of nowhere as the men onboard fired down over the swarm of Covenant they flew over. The Covenant did not just stand there and take kills either, so they all diverted their fire towards the sky, coloring the clouds with an eerie green/blue mix of plasma.  
  
"Big mistake." The general thought, as the Covenant exposed their weak side to the humans. As if the men inside the bunker were linked telepathically with the men onboard the pelican, they systematically picked off the strongest to the weakest on both sides of the wave, working their way in. The pelican reached the bunker and landed behind, as planned. Amazed that they weren't torn to bits by all the fire that had been shot their way, the general made a mental note to trust the pilot; something that he usually did not do. A few seconds later, 4 men walked inside his side of the bunker, along with a teenager, which when he walked inside the bunker, covered his nose with his shirt at the musky smell of cold blood on dirt reacted inside his head. His efforts to do so were in vain as he tripped over the body of a soldier on his way to a secure part of the bunker. He had probably not even seen a dead body before, much less a bloody one. However, for a person his age, he acted more mature about it than most grown men would have, and the general respected him for this. He was quickly jerked back from his slight daydream when the soldier who had positioned himself next to him, began to fire. He dittoed his action.  
  
The Covenant kept coming, and kept dying. Thousands of elites alone had fallen, probably close to one hundred thousand Jackels also meeting similar doom. But there were still quite a few left, and many of the hunters still remained intact. And to add to the fact that most were killed by the now dead AA gunners, they would be overrun soon, whether they had the backup or not. All he could do was pray that the Cruiser would arrive soon.  
  
"Sir, I'm running low on ammo." One particularly large marine said. "Yes, soldier, so am I. I don't think we can hold this position. Send one of your men to the other sides of the bunker and prepare them for dust off. And you," he pointed to another marine, this one was a tech, "Radio in and tell HQ that our Cruiser has yet to arrive and that we are out of ammo. Tell them that we are about to lose this generator." Returning to the large marine, he ordered, "Have your pilot ready for take-off in 2 minutes." The soldier replied "Yes sir!" with a salute, handed over his last clip of full ammo, and ran for the back area where the teenager had taken cover. It was now that the general realized that the pilot was the boy. At first, he was not about to risk his life in the hands of a child and his initial thought was just to stay and die defending the generator, like a captain with his ship. But he remembered his mental note about the courage and ability of the pilot just getting here, so he decided it was worth some risk.  
  
An eternal moment later, the marine returned and said, "We're ready. We have to go. Now." He said.  
  
The General took one last look at the amount of Covenant he had killed, as well as the good men's bodies that now littered the ground. He would make sure that their brave efforts would not be forgotten.  
  
The General along with the marine, who returned a mass of fire at enemy, ran outside the bunker. They took cover at every chance, before taking another sprint. Once they reached the pelican, the pilot began the liftoff procedure, and they did a quick headcount. They had brought 18 men to the bunker, and only 7 were brought back alive, and that included the men already inside the bunker. The engines roared to life as the ship lifted off the ground, and began its trek back to base.  
  
Most of them were still in shock, if not for fear of their life now, it was for fear of a life later at all. They had never seen such firepower, strength in numbers, sacrifice, or determination in the Covenant at any of their encounters before. The General walked to the cockpit of the pelican and watched out the window at the burning forests the Covenant had set ablaze.  
  
"This is some piece of flying, son. What's your name." The general said.  
  
"Kyle... Sir. My name is Kyle." He said.  
  
"Well, Kyle. How did you learn to fly like this?"  
  
"Mostly simulation centers, but my dad helps me some." He replied  
  
"Remind me to give your dad a promotion when we get back." The general replied, trying to increase the boy's spirits.  
  
"Yes Sir, I think I Wi..." Kyle Stopped. There was a huge flash of light from the rear, along with a tremendous noise. Kyle stopped the pelican and turned it around just in time to see a huge ball of plasma from one of the Covenant Cruisers strike the roof of the complex, melting it's way down to the core of the generator. A few seconds later, The sky turned a hellish fire red with a tunnel of smoke like an F-5 tornado burst out of the ground. The nuclear reactors must have gone critical, or it's safety measures were melted by plasma. After the initial blast, his thoughts returned to where he was; in an electrically controlled aircraft. As soon this thought clicked inside his head, his field of vision became blocked by trees. Kyle was one step ahead of the General and landed the Pelican inside a forest, and shut down the electrical components. They landed with a thud as a gigantic EMP wave approached them. As soon as the lights had dimmed, preparing to go out, the blast swept over the ship causing some of the lights to explode. They were lucky to be alive once again. Kyle restarted the engines and continued his flight back to HQ.  
  
* * *  
  
"Dad, we're almost there." Kyle called back to his father, who in return nodded an acknowledgement and warned his teammates. They cocked their guns and began to relax slightly. They were almost at base. The feeling washed over them like a warm blanket of security. A soldier's home and training ground can make any good man fuzzy inside. That warm, fuzzy feeling was short lived, however, when they reached their base. Fire raged from inside the structure. Ashes of burning wood, flesh, and melting metal filled the air. The engines of the aircraft started to choke, so Kyle steered away from the complex.  
  
"Where do we go now? What do we do?" Kyle asked.  
  
His father thought for a minute, and then made his decision. "Take us back to the forest just outside of the generator. There is a secret underground base there. But go now, I'm not sure if we can get inside it."  
  
Kyle didn't question his father's directions. He turned the aircraft toward the forest they had emerged from, and headed there at top speed. After 5 minutes of being shot at, wondering through the forest, and beginning to think that they were lost, they stumbled upon a small clearing. In the center was a 100 foot steel door. It opened for them, and the Pelican dropped inside the tunnel. The reinforced steel tube lead underground for what seemed like forever. It must have been 3 miles underground. Finally, they saw a light, and floated into a huge chamber. This was the UNSC's secret research laboratory. This was the research facility that has produced every technological advancement towards the destruction of the Covenant, as well as the most effective weapon against them in the Corporations history. The newest group of Spartans. They weren't as sharp as the first, and couldn't live up to the legends of the Master Chief, but they were still very efficient killers, and that's all they needed to be.  
  
Kyle landed the pelican down on a helipad, and the soldiers climbed out of the aircraft, and ran inside. The inside of the steel cave was buzzing with activity. Everyone who had known about the hideout had all arrived here. It was a wonder that the Covenant hadn't spotted the hideout. The Spartans were grouped together on the bottom of the cave, as well as several helljumpers. They the earths Elite, and the earths last defense. Kyle was grabbed by the arm by his father, who dragged him inside a door the side of the wall. They traveled to the command center. It seemed like everyone had the same thought. There was a line just to get inside. His father just snorted a laugh, and walked past the long line of pilots, techs, and marines. Once again, Kyle didn't question his father, nor his actions, but he couldn't help but wonder why he could do this. He walked inside his first command center, and was amazed at just the look. Gleaming silver, bright sky blue floor, and black control panels. But it was what was on the monitors that caught Kyle's utmost attention. A purple Covenant cruiser hovered above the City that Kyle lived in. It's side plasma turrets were glowing red hot, as it prepared to fire on the helpless city. Kyle screamed as the cruiser shot it's lethal plasma.  
  
Then. Right then. It stopped. Everything. It all stopped. The small fires inside the city, the oncoming shot if plasma, all of it. Kyle, as well as the people inside the control room looked around at the monitors, then at each other. The door opened, and the General Blake Stanforth stepped onto the deck. "What the hell is going on? Everyone is frozen." A brilliant flash of light lit one of the monitors as the skies parted for a huge blast of something the size of a skyscraper fell from the sky, and held a course for the cruiser. The shields were the first to go, then the nose of the ship. Explosions rocketed from every window on the vessel as the blast continued deeper inside the ship. Kyle saw the huge ship start to buckle as its generators began to implode, and the ship collapsed, and floated toward the ground. Everyone stood around the monitor in shock. Kyle looked toward the plasma bolt that had already been fired, and thought that the city was doomed. But once again, the skies parted, and this time a ship floated into view. The ship began to rotate. Sparks of electricity shot out of it as its speed increased, and the skies turned black. The plasma bolt was less than 5 seconds from impacting with the ground when it stopped. Lightning from the sky darted to the ground in front of the plasma, and slowed it's progress. Then another. And another. Soon, there were continuous bolts of lightning CONTROLLING the plasma. The plasma started to turn green, and dissipate. After about 30 seconds of this, the plasma was gone. The sky returned to its normal color, and the ship started to land.  
  
"Oh My God! What the hell is that? What just happened? How is that possi..." The General was cut off. Directly behind him, 2 figures appeared. They were enormous. The General instinctively went for a gun, but one of the creatures simply smashed the cabinet to pieces with his fist. The other of them held a small device that looked like a portable AI construct Display. Indeed, that's what it turned out to be, as a female human appeared inside the construct. Cortana. Most of the people inside the room stared at it as if they had no idea what was going on. But 2 people knew, and for the first time since the invasion began, started to smile. "Hello, Lieutenant Stanforth. Surprised to see me?" Cortana spoke. "Yes, I truly am. And it's General Stanforth now. How did you..." "What? Make it back alive? Well, I owe my survival to the Master Chief. You owe your to these creatures." Cortana told him. She began unfolding the events that had taken place. Halo. The Flood. The Eternals, and their history. Everything. "I have saved a subroutine that allows me to translate between us, so if you need to talk, find me." She finished.  
  
A sudden rustle of noise came from the hall outside. The frozen state must have warn off. Dozens of men stormed into the room, all stopping when their eyes met the eternals. A few of them ran back. Kyle was in shock. Never in his young life did he ever expect to actually see aliens. Much less friendly ones.  
  
The Eternals began to speak. A low rumble, as if a boulder were rolling down a hill, came out, and Cortana began her flawless translation. "They say that they need to return to their ship. They will fight off the Covenant, but it will take some time. Would you like to come with us?" She offered. The General thought for a minute, then walked to the nearest control panel, and pressed a button, typed something into the computer, and pressed another button. He then said, "This is General Blake Stanforth. Spartans 397-409 report to the central command center immediately." A few moments later, the door opened, and 12 green figures marched machine like into the control room. One of them, wearing a gold emblem of 401 on his left chest plate, spoke.  
  
"Spartans 397-409 reporting. Green Team assembled. What are our orders?" He asked.  
  
"Green Team, listen up! These creatures behind me are our allies. You are NOT to shoot unless shot upon. We are going to board their aircraft, and oversee their battle with the covenant. If you see any suspicious activity, report to me. Clear?!" He ordered.  
  
"SIR, YES SIR!" they shouted back. The general turned back to Cortana's figure and said, "Ok, We're ready."  
  
"Ok, General. Anyone else coming along?" Asked Cortana. One more person stepped forward. Kyle's father. Cortana took one look at the man, and spoke. "So, Seth. Are you going to be joining us as well?" she asked. Seth chuckled slightly, and replied. "Yes, Cortana. I can't wait to see him again." Kyle looked up at his father, clueless as to what was going on. "See whom?" he thought. He was left short of time to ask the question, as a bluish light formed around the Spartans, the General, Seth, and the Eternals as they were teleported back to the ship.  
  
* * *  
  
They reappeared inside a long hallway. The two eternals turned as soon as they reappeared, and Cortana spoke. "Follow these two. They will take us to the bridge." After a few minutes of brisk walking to keep pace, they came to a dead end, two doors on each side. The eternal not holding the Cortana construct said something to the door, and it opened as if it were alive. They all walked in. This room was crimson red, smelled too. Seth cocked his neck, and caught a glisten off of something. He looked to his left, and saw staring out a window, a Spartan. His stature was incredible; solid as a stone, cold and stealthy. His armor was burned, beaten, and battered. Seth stood in shock for a moment, then regained his composure, pulled his military jacket tight against him, and walked toward him.  
  
Seth was the first to speak. "Hey old friend. We thought you were dead, and instead you were pulling together a force to defeat the covenant. How've ya been?" Seth said with a slight quiver in his voice. At first, nothing happened. But after a few seconds the Spartan slowly turned around and faced the new crowd. The young Spartans lowered their stances and saluted the Master Chief.  
  
"Hello. I see the negotiations went well. I do suppose our arrival here was well timed." The Master Chief said  
  
"Yes, it was, sir. We were about to fall under the stress and strength the Covenant brought with them. But thanks to you, we will live to fight another day." Seth said.  
  
"Don't thank me, thank the Eternals. It was them who found me. I assume Cortana has filled in all the rough holes in the recent past." He replied.  
  
"She did, but..." he was cut off.  
  
A sudden vibration rocked the ship. The Master Chief returned to his former stance, as he stared out the window once again. Without turning an inch, he said, "We should talk later."  
  
The Spartans returned to their upright and alert positions. Cortana, now floating around on the portable display, hovered next to the Master Chief. He bent down, pulled the AI chip out of the hovering platform, and inserted it inside the helmet of his armor. The liquid crystal feeling returned to him as he shared his mind with her once again. "Look at these creatures go. They're obliterating the entire Covenant force, and they haven't even lost a ship yet." She said.  
  
Indeed, the Master Chief was impressed. He watched the fight outside the ship unfold. Most of the Covenant ships were either completely destroyed, or running away. A few were still in fighting condition, but were not that way for long as they were being picked off fairly fast. One group of seven Covenant ships formed a V shape and warmed up over twenty plasma turrets combined. There were two Eternal ships stationary in the Covenant's course. They began to rotate. Faster. And Faster. Soon they were a blur, and they started to emit bolts of lightning. Then, the Covenant fired. A huge wave of plasma, boiling a mighty orange, sped toward the rotating Eternal ships. The Master Chief had had plenty of time to learn how the systems of the Eternals plasma controlling power worked, and he eyed the space between the two spinning ships. Soon enough, a small ball of emerald color light appeared. It grew larger, and larger, until it engulfed the 2 ships. The plasma from the Covenant battle group slowed as it got to the sun-like ball of green. After another moment, it had stopped. Sparks of power latched onto each individual ball of plasma, and converted the plasma into their own weapon. Then, a blinding flash of light, even for the Spartan, spiked its peak, and forced the Spartan to turn away. Once he returned to look out the window, the now green plasma was headed at the oncoming Covenant battle group. They tried to dodge the attack, but were each engulfed in their own attack, and utterly destroyed.  
  
What now remained of the Covenant were running for their lives. There were also the ground troops to contend with. However, the Master Chief knew what would happen. A voice came into the room from a hidden speaker of sorts and spoke in the Eternals tongue. A soon as the voice ended, Cortana translated. "That was a warning to seek an a weapons station chair immediately." She transmitted the message to the other Spartans, who had been taken beforehand to a secure location. A chair appeared behind him, and the Master Chief closed his outer visor. A screen of the earth appeared on his inner view screen, and he knew what was next. A small electric shock rippled through his body putting him and everyone else onboard into a mixed state of temporary Paralysis and Unconsciousness. He could still hear, and see. This was the Eternals Flagship Safety Protocol. When this ship rotated, it created extreme stress on a conscious mind. Thus, the mixed state was invented and put into use. The Master Chief stared closely at the screen before him. The skies started turning black. Gigantic thunderstorms appeared on the surface, and lightning was abundant. The Eternals ship was controlling the storm on the surface; using the lightning to kill the ground troops. And ingenious weapon, but the most effective the Master Chief had ever seen. After a few moments, the storms began to ease, and the feeling started returning to his body.  
  
"Whew, that was weird." He said to no one inparticular, and stared out the window once more. No Covenant ships were moving, and the last tears in space from a slipstream jump were just now closing. The Covenant were on the run. It was the first thing good the Master Chief had felt in a long time. "Now," he thought, "where do we go from here?" 


	7. Operation Bloodsoaked Memories

Chapter 7: Operation "Blood-soaked Memories"  
  
Date: April 06, 2554 / 1300 Hours Location: Aboard UNSC Cruiser "Iceberg" / Debriefing Room  
  
The doors to the debriefing room opened and 3 men in suits walked in, fearless in their entrance. Behind them walked in the President, in tears. Everyone in the room, including the Master Chief, the Dom, the "rookie" Spartans, and other assorted ranks of people turned to look at him. His eyes were red, his shirt damp, and his hair ruffled.  
  
"Sir, here is your chair." Said one of the bodyguards as he pointed to a chair at the side of the table that sat in the middle of the room seating the others. The president sniffed, slowly turned his head, and turned around to find his chair. He was clearly in a state of chaos and distress.  
  
"Ummm... Mr. President, we are ready to begin the meeting. Would you like to start us off?" said the Dom's AI translator.  
  
The president sniffed several times, then sneezed into a handkerchief, and began. "Ugh, yes. Lets start. Ummm.... I think you all know why we have called this meeting." Everyone looked at him, then at each other. The Dom grinned. "Well, to be blunt, we are planning a strike on the Covenant homeworld. The Eternals have been gracious enough to lend us the location, as well as sufficient men, vehicles, weapons, and spacecraft necessary to execute a full invasion and destruction of the Covenant race." He finished.  
  
Everyone looked at him again and thought amongst themselves.  
  
The following silence was broken by the door to the room as another person entered the room. Seth. He walked to the president's side and bowed out of respect. "Sir, I heard about your loss. I'm terribly sorry and will serve in any retaliation attack you may be planning sir." The Master Chief stared at him. He and Seth had had a long history. Seth was one of his trainers as a young Spartan. He was also the youngest, only 10 years older than the Master Chief was. Whenever there was a mission, Seth was always there to offer advice. Of course they never needed advice, but he was still there by their side to help. The Master Chief had also had the privilege of meeting Kyle, Seth's son. He had trained him well, and would be just like his father, one of the greatest soldiers ever to bear the uniform.  
  
The president looked at him straight in the eyes and bowed his head. "That's, that's very kind of you sir. I'll keep that in mind." He said in reply.  
  
Seth took a seat and the president continued with the planned operation discussing where which ships were to go, and so forth. After 2 and a half hours of planning, the mission was set and the meeting was dismissed. Everyone got up and was about to leave but the Dom stood up and said something very loudly. Once he had finished speaking, Cortana translated. He said, "I am very proud to be part of this alliance, as is the rest of my race. We would like to extend an invitation to the Master Chief to our home planet once this war is over. If it weren't for him, we would have never saved you, and you would surely be dead by now. Once again, thanks. Oh, Master Chief, may I have a word with you for just a moment?"  
  
Everyone looked at the Chief as he replied. "Yes, of course." He walked forward to the Dom, who was getting up out of his massive chair and proceeded to the door. The Master Chief followed him out of the door and down the hall to an elevator type device. He walked in and closed the door, mashed a button on the side of the wall, and the elevator descended downward. He spoke. "Master Chief, I would like to once again say how much I respect you because you helped form our alliance. As a personal gift, I would like to give you some upgrades to your armor. That is, if you wish us to."  
  
The Master Chief stared at him for a moment and as the elevator slowed to a halt at the bottom floor, he replied. "You do know by now that we are very careful about who we disclose information to, especially alien races. However, since you already know how to upgrade my suit, then there is no point in not taking up on my offer since I have nothing to hide."  
  
The Dom grinned, nodded, and proceeded out of the door that had just opened. Two eternals were waiting just outside the door. "These two will lead you to the upgrade chamber." He gurgled. The Master Chief nodded at him, then followed the two eternals down another long hall. Once there, they made their way down a few flights of twisted stairs, and then at the bottom, came across a steel looking door. One of the eternals screamed something very loud, and the door opened. The Master Chief glanced inside the room and had just began to open his mouth in awe as the second eternal nudged him inside, and they closed the door.  
  
The room was neon green, silver lighting embedded inside a luminescent type glass barrier between them and something on the outside, and where he was now. It was if the glass was glowing a special light to reflect what was on the outside. The floor reflected the light coming from the glass as well as the silver speckles. He felt like his mind was being warped inside out.  
  
"This is really, really scary. What's going to happen to me?" asked Cortana. "I don't know, but they'll take good care of you." He replied. Just as he finished, the door they had entered closed, and for the first time, he realized that he was the only one inside the room. The light grew dimmer, and before the Master Chief had time to think, another door, on the other side of the room, opened. Something was coming out of it. Something big. The Master Chief stood in a defensive crouch for a moment, then his enhanced eyesight kicked in, revealing the object, and he smiled.  
  
. 


	8. Enter The Lion

Chapter 8: Enter The Lion  
  
Date: April 06, 2554 / 1453 Hours Location: Aboard UNSC Cruiser "Iceberg" / The Bowels Of The Ship  
  
The object glistened in the now rising light to reveal a sculpture like object. The closer it got, the more the Master Chief began to realize that it was not an enemy, merely a metallic reflection of himself. The object finally broke the threshold between the outside, and the room itself to reveal another Spartan suit. This one bounced back rays of light, shining brightly in the light. The armor was gold.  
  
The Master Chief looked at it for one second and frowned. "This won't work. The gold armor will make me like a lantern to anyone looking my way." He said. "Indeed, it will, if you allow it to." The Master Chief spun around to see who had spoken those words. It was General Blake Stanforth. "I allowed them to see the technicalities of your suit so they could make upgrades. This was my idea. I thought that since we were headed to the Covenant homeworld, you might have a score to settle with them since your Halo adventure. This will, needless to say, give you exponentially more than you can expect."  
  
The Master Chief eased himself, and cocked his head. "So, what comes with the new package?" he asked. "Well, for starters, your shields are much more powerful. Whenever a plasma rifle or pistol is shot at you, the shield recognizes it and absorbs the energy from the blasts. This, in turn, charges another new feature, called overdrive, also called OD for short. This injects a specially formulated, super charged DNA-Electrolytic fused mixture. It makes you over 100 times more powerful in physical strength and smarter than 6 Cortana's combined. Pardon me Cortana. When you initiate OD, it changes your armor to red, and sparks fly everywhere, as if you were a lightning rod. To add to all that, when you are in Overdrive, the plasma absorber supercharges your shield in a way so that you are able to fire another new weapon built into the shield. This weapon is a combination of both human technology, and Eternal technology. We call it the EXP-4K. It fires an EMP blast that can disable any electronic device in over a 5-mile radius. The other feature of this weapon is the twist the eternals have thrown into this weapon. If you so choose to do this, when you fire it, it will not only disable the electronics, but also will reboot the devices and put you in charge. In other words, you could detonate this weapon of mass destruction inside a Covenant ship, for example, and make the enemy AI work for you. This weapon can only be fired during Overdrive, but all this firepower comes at a price." He finished  
  
"What price is this?" "You. Your mind. You see, the human mind can only process so much information and carry so much stress. That's what OD does. When OD runs out, and you are returned to your normal form, you're strength drops dramatically for an instant, and you, to say the least, snap. You go crazy. This may not last long, but it is dangerous, as you cannot only not recognize friend from foe, you may have suicidal thoughts, and try to injure yourself. Hopefully that's where Cortana will route control of the suit to us, and your suit will be deadlocked, allowing the surge if insanity to pass. Afterward, you will not know what has happened during the OD. Altogether, it's a worthy weapon, and should be treated as one.  
  
"Understood. Anything else I should know about?" asked the Master Chief. "A few more. OD only lasts for about 4 minutes, and the aftereffects last for about 2 and ½ to 3 minutes. Plasma grenades are no longer a problem either, unless they land next to you. If they land on you, your suit detects it, shuts it down, and uses it's own source of plasma to move the grenade to wherever you may want it." Stated the General.  
  
"Wait just a second. You keep saying 'If I So Choose'. What do you mean by that?" The Chief Interjected.  
  
"Good question, Sir. There is no really simple way of putting this, so I'll say it the best I can. You know how when Cortana is inserted into your suit, you have a feeling of pacified unity?"  
  
"Yes, I know what you're talking about."  
  
"Well, this is very much the same way. From the moment you step inside that suit you become one being. You thought that your other suit was simply another limp attached onto your body that you were able to control. This suit, however, you will not even know it's there. Your mind is directly linked with the suit to allow these features to be thought about. Sounds complicated, huh." The general said.  
  
"No. I've heard worse. Sounds like fu..." the Master Chief tried to say.  
  
"Wait just a second, here! What about me?!" Cortana interrupted.  
  
"Don't worry about anything Cortana. You'll still be connected with him the same way you always have been."  
  
"Crap. I, I mean great. Never better." The Master Chief blurted out.  
  
"Oh yeah, I'm happy to be with you to." She retorted back.  
  
"Ok, ok you two. Cool it down. We need to get the Master Chief oriented with his new armor."  
  
And with that, the Master Chief and the General proceeded to fit the suit. Meanwhile, deep inside the machinery of the ancient MJOLNIR suit, a voice spoke. "Soon... very soon... the, the power will be... be mine. Wait. Stop. get out. Leave me alone! I don't need you!" A spark ignited inside the helmet. After a moment, the voice spoke again. "Soon."  
  
Two days later...  
  
"Sir, the forces are ready to depart. Shall I give the order?" Cortana spoke with a certain glee in her voice.  
  
"Yes, give the order. Lets go and get those bastards." Replied the general.  
  
The master chief stood in the back corner of the control room watching the tears in space appear, and the ships travel inside. He knew that the time had come to give the Covenant a taste of their own medicine, and he intended to give then his fair share.  
  
Slowly but surely, they were on their way to the Covenant homeworld. "ETA 3 hours and 27 minutes, sir." Cortana replied.  
  
The master chief walked out of the room, and into the common area of the ship. Hundreds upon hundreds of soilders were waiting for their big shot to get back at the Covenant for many reasons. For killing their family, for killing fellow soilders, for destroying entire planets, it was all justified, and they awaited for the grim reapers revenge against the one tyrant that had so successfully pushed them back to the brink of extinction.  
  
The master chief finished his brief trip to the commons area, and returned to the bridge. His brand new armor glistened against any metallic surface, as if it were poised to pounce.  
  
He returned to the bridge, and stared out the window once more. Off in the distance, arguing voices could be heard.  
  
"NO! I won't do it! It's suicide for my men, and this is the last bulk of the UNSC's military." Said the general.  
  
"You must trust us. You have faithfully trusted us when we said we were your friends, when we said we would help you defeat your enemy, but now you resist one of our plans that could mean the collapse of the entire operation?" the Dom barked back.  
  
"Whats going on here?" the master chief interjected.  
  
"I have ASKED that the remaining human forces be used as a diversion in 2 ways. First, the majority of the forces will make a small land incision on the planets surface. Their main goal is one of their 3 main shield generators. The Covenant homeworld has a shield barrier that prevents any and all fire from a ship to enter their atmosphere. However, their weakness is that this shield can be passed through with ships. The plan was to destroy one of these generators. When this happens, a part of the shield will weaken and ultimately collapse momentarily while the other two generators try to compensate, which they can. If we destroy the enemy shield generator, we can continue with our operation as planned. With me so far?" he paused.  
  
"So far so good." Replied the master chief. "Continue"  
  
"Ok, but if they fail to destroy the first generator...", "That's where the problem is," interrupted the General," There will be no failing. And if there is a failure in operation, then our men would retreat and fall back. If they were to fail and not complete their mission, then one of you..." "One of OUR ships will have to do a drastic move and self destruct just above the generator, killing anything for a good 10 miles in the shockwave."finished the Dom.  
  
"Hmmm... why send human troops to take out such a vital pulseline when they can be used to fight on the front line, where they would want?"  
  
"Because we are not capable of entering the atmosphere in such a small ship. In the time it would take to land a carrier down their, we'd be cooked." Said the dom.  
  
The Master Chief pondered the situation for a minute and gave his reply. "Fine, but I have a better plan."  
  
"What is it?"  
  
"Let me go. I will take out the generator. This lets the soldiers fight where they want, and me a chance to test out my new digs." He said.  
  
They both thought about it for a moment, and agreed.  
  
"Fine then. It's all settled. When are we going to..." He stopped.  
  
A violent movement rattled through the ship, and they stopped mid conversation and ran to the bridge. Upon reaching it, they found the bridge in total chaos. On the front viewscreen, there was a Covenant Battle Cruiser. "Capitan, what should we do?" asked the pilot.  
  
The Capitan mashed a small red button on the side of his chair and said, "All hands, battle stations."  
  
"Pilot, drop us out of slipstream. Radio to the other ships and tell them of our delay. We're going to take care of these guys before they can tell their HQ that we're coming."  
  
"Yes sir!" said the pilot, and he turned around and fiddled with the controls. Soon, the ship saw the slipstream decay, and the space around them return to normal. The Covenant ship followed as if to test how far they were going to go.  
  
"Weapons, attack pattern Omega." barked the captain who was giving orders. Small green bolts of light ejected from the sides of the ship, and swam toward the other ship. The weapons landed a direct hit on the covenant ship, but wasn't enough to knock their shields out. The Covenant retaliated by firing their plasma. Huge purple blasts streamed toward the Eternal's vessel.  
  
"Hehe" laughed the crew. "Wait till they find out who they are dealing with." The weapons operator messed with the controls a bit more and soon was ready. When the plasma was 10 miles from the ship, he fired it. The shield exploded and engulfed the plasma and stopped it dead in it's tracks. The two ships stood in a stand off. Then the Covenant ship's engines engaged and thrusted the ship into full reverse. They were running away.  
  
"Nah ah ah" said the captain. The plasma from the covenants ship moved together in one massive ball, and was fired back at the other ship. The shield blast from the eternals ship had disabled the ships on the other ship as well, so when the plasma struck, it melted through the hull like butter and destroyed the ship.  
  
"Now that's more like it. Pilot, return us to slipstream. And do try to make up for our lost time." The pilot mashed a few more buttons and another slipstream tear formed for them to inter. A moment later, they were on their way again.  
  
A few hours later, the ships exited slipsteam. Hundreds of tiny tears in space appeared just enough for each ship to enter normal space, then closed again. The master chief stood at the front viewscreen, and had his helmet not been in the way, people would have seen his jaw hanging open. The Dom floated in a chair beside him. He spoke  
  
"She's a wonder isn't she?" He was speaking of what was on the screen. An endless purple shield was separating the sides, and clearly marked the entrance into Covenant space.  
  
"Yes, we could go through the front door, announced with a clear trumpet of war, and get annoyed all the way to their homeworld, but we have a better idea. We're going through our own back door. Watch and you'll see what I mean." He said. Then he began to speak in his native language to the weapons station, and the two spoke for nearly a minute. He then turned back around and settled in his chair as if he was going to take a nap.  
  
The Master Chief wondered what he said, but he knew that he would find out soon enough. "Hmmm, I didn't know they could do that. This should be an interesting sight." Said Cortana.  
  
On the screen, 4 ships could be seen moving closer to the barrier. They were lined up as if they were the corners of a box. All was quiet in the control room, and the 4 ships halted just a few hundred yards from the shield. Then the Master Chief felt his body move, and the ship rattle. The ship he was on was now beginning to move forward. About halfway to the shield, the other 4 ships began to emit sparks of lightning around themselves. The weapons master fiddled with the controls violently, and very swiftly. After another slow minute, the Dom's ship was in the center of the other 4 ships. They each spat a beam of light at the center, creating an X of energy. The room dimmed, and turned red. The Master Chief could no longer see out of the front viewscreen, so he turned to look at the weapons station panel. Upon walking there, he saw a diagram of the pattern the ships had formed. A circle was growing around the Dom's ship, and when it reached the other ships, it stopped. Then another surge of movement was felt, and as suddenly as it started, it ended. The room lit up abruptly and then dimmed again. The Master Chief turned and looked again at the front viewscreen. The 5 ships combined had created an anti-Covenant shield disruptor of some sort and had created a square hole in the shield. He could see the hundreds of ships moving to squeeze trough the hole. After about 10 minutes of emerging, the ships finally finished their crossing, and the 5 ships holding the door open crossed into Covenant space. The hole closed almost instantly. The Covenant were in for a real surprise now. Hundreds of ships on an attack vector were in their own space and willing to wage war, and they didn't even know it. The Dom spoke again something in his own language, and Cortana translated  
  
"He told them to bring their cloak online. Apparently they won't be able to see us until they want them too. This is very exciting wouldn't you say." The Master Chief just nodded.  
  
Another hour had passed and the fleet were coming up on the homeworld. The planet was huge, at least 6 times larger than earth. It was covered by the enormous purple shield, and the generators could be seen as they were in brighter areas. The Master Chief looked out of the front viewscreen at the task ahead of him. The eternals had given him something for his suit to make him look like an elite, and a translator so he could speak Covenant. Should his cover be blow, he was ready to fight. In fact, he was counting on it. An eternal walked into the room and grabbed the Master Chief by the arm and said something in his language. Cortana once again translated. "He said that it's time to go and do our job." With that, the Master Chief turned and walked out of the control room, headed for the weapons locker.  
  
There was a plethora of weapons to choose from, and he did so easily. Covenant, Human, and Eternal weapons lined the sides of the walls. Plasma rifles, Grenades of all shapes, sizes and uses, Pistols, field generators, and many other interesting items. He decided to go hog wild and loaded up with as much weaponry as possible. He made several trips between the docking bay and the weapons locker. If he ever ran out of ammo or weapons, he could always return to his ship to restock. Or so he hoped. He took 3 Rocket launchers with 4 crates of rockets, 2 assault rifles with 60 clips of ammo, 10 plasma rifles with a recharge center in the middle of his shuttle, Frag, Toxic, EMP and Plasma grenades, 12 pistols with enough ammo to shape a new Mt. Rushmore, and a few new weapons and gadgets as well. One was the field generator, that set up a protective field 10 feet high from one of the generators to another. Another was a plasma turret. These shot bullets of plasma that could burn a whole in anything. The occasional soldier that he would encounter between trips would look at him and give 1 of 2 reactions. One was to salute him, and wish him the best of luck. These men did not doubt him, for they considered him a god. The others would look at him as if he was suicidal, and was hauling his own cross. The Master Chief ignored most all of them, and finished his loading.  
  
He didn't know what to think. The time had come to make the Covenant pay for their insulting rage against humanity. Yet something felt amiss. He didn't know what it was, but he knew that he had a big and near impossible task for anyone except him in front of him. His muscles twitched with anxiety as he stepped aboard a small 1 way shuttle to the surface. 


	9. A Walk In The Park

**Chapter 9: A Walk In The Park**

**Date: April 08, 2554 / 1030 Hours**

**Location: Aboard 1 Way Shuttle / Docking Bay **

"You must be excited. New suit, new weapons, and license to kill. I am also eager to try out some new subroutines in the field, like the 'Auto Translator', which automatically translates anything you hear into English, whether it be a Covenant, or an Eternal speaking." Said Cortana.

The Master Chief was in no mood for mild mannered chat. His mind was focused. He replied without the slightest thought. "Yeah, that's great. Can't wait."

"You say that now, but you wait. It'll come in handy sooner or later." She snorted back at him.

The Master Chief sat down and buckled himself and his new suit into a seat, and prepared for the takeoff. After a minute the auto pilot kicked in, and they were on their way to the surface. The main objective was to deactivate or destroy the first shield generator. There were other objectives, such as investigate a device that the covenant had been working on for the past 2 years, but nothing else came above the main goal. It didn't take long for him to reach the surface, and the shuttle computer to sketch a rough map of the area near the shuttle, as well as a path to the generator. The Master Chief unbuckled himself, and loaded up. The time had come to kick ass.

After loading up, and setting a perimeter for the shuttle, he set off towards the generator. It was about a mile through thick jungle, but the Master Chief strolled through it like melted butter. He didn't feel any of the bushes that got in his way. One half grown tree made him tickle, but he bent over and snapped it in half. He took the tree in his hand, and chuckled at his strength before pressing onward.

After about 15 minutes of the jungle hike, he came to the brink of an open clearing. It was flat, and coated with a purplish tinted glass all the way to the edge of a building. From the center of the building sprouted a beam of light that broke at a point and fed the shield which spawned around the planet. The Master Chief surveyed the area around the compound and found it to be severely underguarded. One half asleep blue elite stood next to the only door on that side of the building. He was sure that every side had an entrance such as this. Using his enhanced vision, he looked at the weapon of the elite. It was a standard issue plasma pistol.

There was no easy way to get around the guard, but it looked as if he were dozing. The master chief seized this opportunity and slowly, and silently crept up to the guard. The soles of his feet were the perfect material to walk on glass, and he slid along the glass palate as a knife through butter. Upon arriving next to the guard, who was still napping, the Master Chief noticed a small plastic chip hanging from the elites chest.

"It's probably an ID chip, I may need that later." He thought. Then with the utmost silence, he reached up, put his hand around the elite's neck and picked him up. The elite awoke in an instant, and began to struggle. Not wanting to attract attention, the Master Chief squeezed, and snapped the elites neck. He dropped the body, and took the chip from him. He opened the door and continued inside.

After walking inside the complex, the Master Chief looked around. He had entered a long hallway, with the occasional door. To his immediate left, there was a computer terminal. The chief turned, and analyzed the device. "It appears to be a security terminal. Wait a moment so I can translate." Said Cortana. After a moment, the letters changed on the screen into English.

ENTER SECURITY CODE…

The Master Chief took the chip and inserted it into a slot that looked appropriate.

CODE ACCEPTED.

SECURITY CLEARANCE LEVEL 1

ROOT DIRECTORY . . .

"Give it a command." Said Cortana. "Tell It to shut off the generator."

The Master Chief entered the so command.

ACCESS DENIED

YOU ARE NOT A VALID USER  
A LEVEL 3 SECURITY CLEARANCE IS REQUIRED

ROOT DIRECTORY …

"What now."

"See if you can draw up the plans for this place, and even if you can find someone who has a level 3 access code."

After doing a search, the screen read…

SECURITY CLEARANCE LEVEL 3 CHIPS BELONG TO… and the computer listed several names and races. After another moment, a map appeared on the screen. Cortana stored it in her memory banks, and the Master Chief removed the chip. He proceeded through the hall cautiously, looking for cameras, and other security precautions. There didn't appear to be any. But who could blame them. No one expected for anyone to be on the homeworld of the Covenant without them knowing. Small letters on each door he passed described what was behind each door. After about 5 minutes of shadow dodging, he came to a door that was slightly larger than the others, and was colored red. The tag read Underground Generator Access Shaft. The Master Chief, expecting anything, opened the door slowly. The space inside the room was black, and then the he realized that this was a back way into the underground complex. He had seen it on his map. The Master Chief hastily closed the door, and began to descend the ladder.

Upon reaching the bottom, the Master Chief seeked the shelter of a crates shadow, as he heard voices. The room he had entered was circular, roof and all, with a windowed pressbox type room near the top. Several creatures were talking back and forth to each other. He couldn't hear them, and he assumed that the room was sound proof. If it wasn't them he heard, who was it. He looked around again, and saw something move next to the crate he was hiding behind. He peaked around to see that it was a cage. Inside it was a furry ball of some kind, like a cat curled up. The master chief looked closer at the object, and realized that it was a cat. The voices were coming from the cat. The entrance to the backup ladder to the surface was an experimentation room. But how did the covenant do this to a cat, or was it a cat at all?

"I think it's ugly. Wait till those guys in the booth leave so you can kill it." Said Cortana. "O come on Cortana, what's gotten into you. This is marvelous. A perfect blend of nature to disguise…" the Master Chief's sentence was cut short. He looked at the door and saw it open. The creatures from the booth were coming into the room. One of them stood at the door with a notepad and writing utensil at his hand.

The chief hid behind the crate as the one of the creatures picked up the crate by a handle at the top, and exited the room. Seizing this opportunity, the chief decided to move. Darting between crates, and other objects, he reached the door. Seeing that there wasn't a handle, or unlock button, the chief thought he was trapped. "Chief, I have a way to get around this door, but it will require me to use your free brain cycles to telepathically manipulate the controls and.."

"Just tell me what you want me to do." Retorted the chief

"Free your mind. Just relax and let me do the work." Said Cortana

The chief did as he was told. After a second, an icy blue chill took over him, and he could feel the presence of another being in his mind. After another moment, the door slid open.

"How did you do that?" said the chief inquisitively

"Just a few new talents I learned from the eternals AI. We had some interesting discussions while we were together."

The Master Chief thought this to be a little odd, but at the same time helpful, so he ignored it.

"Jor Nirtrut Hobean'scu Norrein F gurggui." Shouted a PA like audio system.

"What the hell was that?" asked the chief.

"Working. Hmmm.. It seems to be some sort of announcement. Something about, _Join us in our journey_. _The guardians will accept us if we stay true and holy to our Covenant."_

"What does that mean" asked the chief.

"I don't know. Better keep moving though."

"Yeah, and you had better remind me to tell the eternal's that their translation software for me has gone to shit."

"Dually noted" said cortana.

Continuing through the outpost, he found very little resistance. No grunts or Jackels were here. Only standard issue blue elites stood guard every now and then. Some slept, making it easy to terminate them. Soon he came to what seemed to be the control room. No one was around and another security terminal was outside the door. While using this terminal the chief heard some voices coming from around the corner of the nearby stairwell. He hid in the shadows of a locker like object. The creatures coming down the stairwell were 2 red elites wearing special suits of honor, more like armor. They were talking to each other.

"Soon, we will have the possession of the final god's ring in our hands, and we can be united with our true destiny." Said one of them.

"Yes, indeed if only these annoying humans would get out of our way, we wouldn't have to kill them. But if they want to fight, then they picked the right race to mess with." Said the other

The Master Chief's blood boiled, and the suit grew hot. He noticed on their armor were another set of ID chips. He wanted them. The elites reached the bottom of the stairs, and then made a turn down a corridor that was next to the stairs. Then the Master Chief emerged from his hiding spot. Silent as a fly in a traffic jam, he walked up behind them, grabbed their necks, and snapped them to where the heads were facing him. He dragged their corpses to his former hiding spot, and took their security chips.

He walked back to the entrance to the command center, and inserted the security chip.

CODE ACCEPTED

SECURITY CLEARANCE LEVEL 3

YOU MAY ENTER

Then the door next to him opened, and he cautiously walked inside after removing the chip. There were dials and diagnostics everywhere, monitoring the generator. Inside the control room was a window. The chief walked to this window and his jaw dropped. A solid beam of light was coming out of a giant box in the center of the room the box had wires the size of warthogs going around through the floor. "I need to get in there, plant some explosives, then get the hell outta here." He thought

There were two sleeping hunters laying next to the box. "I'm going to need to kill those." He thought

"Wait, unplug me. I think I saw something you missed." Said Cortana in her seductively cool voice.

"What did I miss? Replied the chief.

"Look along the walls, and if you don't still see it, I'll make you slap yourself." Blurted back Cortana.

The Master Chief turned around and looked along the side of the room and lost his breath. Huge anti-infantry plasma turrets were along the sides of each wall. The Master Chief, trying to regain his breath, unplugged Cortana, and inserted her core chip into the mainframe computer terminal.

After a moment, he noticed that the plasma turrets started to move. They turned to the ground, and shot the hunters. They awoke in an instant only to see their death coming at them. There was an loud explosion, and when the Master Chief looked back, blue blood could be seen plastered along the side of the box like object.

"Hmmm… it seems that I have found their plans. Ohhh, oh god no! Master Chief, it's aweful" said Cortana through a speaker.

Setting aside her worries, he focused on the mission at hand. He unplugged Cortana from her slot, and made his way to an elevator like object he had seen earlier. Upon reaching the bottom floor, the door opened into the enormous room that he had seen earlier. He thought that it looked a lot bigger from inside than it did from an Ariel view. He saw the blood dripping from all over the place from the hunters Cortana had destroyed. To his surprise, he had infiltrated one of the covenants most strategic power points, and was about to plant the explosives without a shot fired. He walked up to the generator box, and placed 2 balls under a tile in the floor right next to the box. "This should do the trick" he thought.

Upon setting the explosive onto the box, the lights dimmed, then returned in a flashing red light. The master chief, with his hopes crushed for an easy escape, reset the timer to 1 minute and began his extraction. Working his way back out of the complex proved more tricky than any other operation he had ever done. Red and Yellow elites stormed the massive halls, while groups of grunts gathered in corners overlapping shields. Still, the Chief was able to make it outside the complex with out a shot fired, or at least thus far.

Once he opened the door to the outside, he realized that he wasn't alone anymore. A red elite was there, his eyes gazing at him through his armor, as if he was waiting on him. The chief brought his weapon to a firing position, only to have the elite to swat it out of his control. The elite was challenging the chief.

"Alright ya groggy bastard. Come on." He said in reply.

The two of them embraced in an armlock, muscles tightening. Each of them pushed the envelope of their limits, neither willing to give in. The chief was fighting for his life, and the elite was fighting for what he lived for; his pride.

Finially, one made an error. A plasma shot sounded from around the corner, and the elite's eyes flinched, catching him off guard. The chief, however, was hardened to these unexpected circumstances and used this time to act. He stepped forward, and pushing his own envelope through the roof, snapped the elites arms backward. The elite screamed to the sky, as the master chief swiftly moved behind him, and snapped his neck silent.

He picked up his pistol, and moved to the sound of the plasma weapon earlier. Slowly and silently he approached the corner. Before rounding it however, he noticed a flicker of blurriness go by. A Camouflaged elite. He one round at the head of the elite, which caused him to become fully visible. He then shot the remainder of the clip into his stomach and with that, the elite fell over dead.

"I better get out of here before I get into more than I can handle." Said the chief.

"What? It's never stopped you before." Said cortana, as the chief ran.

"O shut the hell up. Just what are those plans you were talking about earlier anyway."

He felt the cold interface of cortana's AI get even colder. "Chief, the Halo's aren't just a weapon of mass destruction. They are, collectively, a doorway. A doorway to another dimension. Hell."

The Chief kept on running, and then suddenly the message on the PA system from before made sense. The guardians of hell would accept them into hell. But why would they want to go to hell. Or did they even know?

The master chief arrived at his dropship that had been dispatched and suited up for re-entry into space. He could hear the ships overhead shooting the remainder of the generators. After a few minutes of turbulance, he reentered space, and docked on the eternals ship.

"Well, we've done it. On to the homeworld." Said cortana.

But something was wrong. For an alien race as advanced as the covenant, they should have been more prepared. Masses of elites should have been on watch. He knew something was amiss, as he ventured deeper into uncharted territory.


End file.
